309,206 Shares in Griffon Corporation $GFF Bought by Nuveen LLC

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired 309,206 shares of Griffon Corporation, valued at approximately $22.1 million, representing about 0.64% of the company's total stock.
• Griffon announced a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, payable on September 16, which reflects an annualized yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 53.73%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Griffon, with one rating downgrade from "buy" to "hold" and target price adjustments reflecting a consensus average target price of $98.20.

Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Griffon Corporation (NYSE:GFF - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 309,206 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $22,108,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.64% of Griffon at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Griffon during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $53,994,000. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Griffon by 95,382.7% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 624,457 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $44,505,000 after acquiring an additional 623,803 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Griffon by 17,994.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 194,337 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $138,950,000 after acquiring an additional 193,263 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Griffon by 31.0% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 674,520 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $48,073,000 after acquiring an additional 159,557 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meritage Portfolio Management acquired a new position in shares of Griffon in the 1st quarter worth approximately $5,010,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.22% of the company's stock.

Griffon Stock Performance

Griffon stock traded up $3.4850 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $75.7550. 204,071 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 394,508. Griffon Corporation has a one year low of $60.97 and a one year high of $86.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 22.58. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $75.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.51. The company has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a PE ratio of 56.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.09.

Griffon (NYSE:GFF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The conglomerate reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50. Griffon had a return on equity of 144.21% and a net margin of 2.78%.The company had revenue of $613.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $649.95 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Griffon Corporation will post 5.55 EPS for the current year.

Griffon Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Griffon's payout ratio is currently 53.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GFF has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Griffon from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price target (up previously from $95.00) on shares of Griffon in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Griffon from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.20.

Griffon Company Profile

Griffon Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides consumer and professional, and home and building products in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, and internationally. The company operates through two segments: Home and Building Products, and Consumer and Professional Products. The Home and Building Products segment manufactures and markets residential and commercial sectional garage doors, rolling steel service doors, fire doors, shutters, steel security grilles, and room dividers for the use in commercial construction and repair, and home remodeling applications.